Completing the Cal State Apply application accurately is a very critical step in being considered for admission. We understand that you may have questions as you go through the application. To help you with completing the application, please review the tips below.

Fall 2020 Transfer Applicants - please scroll to the bottom of this page for the Transfer Application Update tips.

General Application Tips

Allow Pop-Ups from Cal State Apply

In order to view additional instructions for a question, your web browser must allow pop-ups from the Cal State Apply application.

If pop-ups are being blocked by your web browsers, you may see the following messages:

Google Chrome – An icon and message saying "Pop-up blocked" will appear on the right side of the URL/search bar.

Mozilla Firefox – An icon will be displayed on the right side of the URL bar and a message saying "Firefox prevented this site from opening a pop-up window" in a yellow box will be shown at the top of the page.

Microsoft Edge – A message will be displayed at the bottom of the browser saying "Microsoft Edge blocked a pop-up from calstate.liaisoncas.com."

To allow for pop-ups to appear for the Cal State Apply application, please do the following:

Google Chrome

Click on the pop-up blocked icon.

Select the "Always allow pop-ups from https://calstate.liaisoncas.com" radio button.

Click on the Cal State Apply instructions link again to have it display.

Mozilla Firefox

In the yellow notification bar, click the "Options" button on the right side.

Click the "Allow pop-ups for calstate.liaisoncas.com" option.

The instructions page should automatically load in a new tab.

Microsoft Edge

In the pop-up blocked message, click either the "Allow once" or "Always allow" button.

The instructions page should automatically load in a new tab.

Use the Cal State Apply Applicant Help Center

The first place that you should look for help is the online Instructions and FAQs in the Cal State Apply application.

After creating an account, you may access this help section by clicking the blue question mark icon in the upper right-hand corner of the screen, and select "Instructions and FAQs" from the dropdown list.

In the Cal State Apply Applicant Help Center, you will be able to access pages and sections detailing various parts of the application, from creating an account, to clarifying how to answer specific questions in the application, through to submitting your application. A link to a "Live Chat" is also available in a blue box located on the lower right corner of the page.

Select the correct Application Term

Before starting the application, please make sure you select the correct application term from the drop down menu and then click 'Apply'.

The Online Application Fee Waiver

In case of financial hardship, the CSU allows for a limited number of undergraduate application fee waivers for residents of California. If you file the admission application via Cal State Apply, the fee waiver request is included in the online system as part of the application process. You will be notified at the time you apply online if you qualify for the fee waiver. If granted a fee waiver, it may be used for up to 4 campuses for each application term.

To be considered for the application fee waiver, you must be:

An undergraduate student (you cannot be in an extension program)

A California resident for more than one year

A U.S. citizen, or someone without lawful immigration status who qualifies for an AB540 non-resident tuition exception

Application fee waivers are not available for residents of other U.S. states, international students, and Graduate/post-bac program applicants. The CSU does not accept College Board fee waivers, nor any other external waiver form.

Mistakes to Avoid

The following common information reporting errors may cause an eligible applicant not to receive an application fee waiver:

If you report yourself as a dependent applicant with a family size of one

If you report the same dollar amount in the Adjusted Gross Income field as well as in the Untaxed Income field

If you select "None" in answer to "What U.S. State/Possession do you regard as your permanent home?"

Applicants who incorrectly report any of the items above will not be granted an application fee waiver.

Residency

Select the US state which you regard as your permanent home, regardless of your legal capacity to establish residency. If you select California, indicate whether you claim California residency and, if so, whether you have lived in California continuously since birth.

DACA, undocumented, or AB540 students:

In your Cal State Apply profile, select "None" for U.S. citizenship status.

In the Residency section, select "California" as the state of residence if you consider California your home.

Be aware that missing or inaccurate information will result in you being considered a non-California resident for CSU tuition purposes.

Freshman Applicants

How to Find Your High School

Accurately finding your high school(s) from the list of available schools in the Cal State Apply application is very important. Doing so will ensure a smoother application process by making it easier for you to complete the High School Coursework section.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when using the High School search:

When searching by the school's address, do not use the city or zip code where you live; always use the school's address.

For example: Although many students from the city of Monterey Park, CA attend Mark Keppel High School, the school is located in Alhambra, CA. If these students search for a school in Monterey Park, they will not find their high school. They must search for the high school in Alhambra.

If searching by a city, do not abbreviate. For example, "Los Angeles" should not be entered as "LA".

If you can't find your school by location, you may also search by the College Board's CEEB code. Consult your school's website, or ask your guidance counselor, for your high school's CEEB code.

Cal State Apply Transfer Student Application Guide

How to Find Your College

Accurately finding your colleges and universities from the list of available schools in the Cal State Apply application is very important. Doing so will result in a smoother application process by making it easier for you to complete the Transcript Entry section.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when adding a college or university:

Never abbreviate. The college search cannot locate institutions by acronyms or abbreviations. The following are some examples:

East Los Angeles College: Not found under East LA College or ELAC

Pasadena City College: Not found under PCC

California State University - Los Angeles: Not found under Cal State LA or CSU Los Angeles

University of California - Los Angeles: Not found under UCLA

University of Southern California: Not found under USC

Several schools have different entries for their main campuses and extension programs. Please make sure to pick the correct "location" based on where you completed the courses.

For example: University of California - Los Angeles vs University of California - Los Angeles (Extension)

Check your Calculated Transfer GPA and Units

To view the Calculated Transfer GPA and Units based on your entered college coursework, go to the Transcript Entry area of the Academic History section of the Cal State Apply Application, and click the "Calculate my Transfer GPA" button.

After clicking the button, it will display the calculated Transfer GPA and Transfer Credit Hours (i.e., total number of completed transferable semester units).

Students applying to Civil Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or Mechanical Engineering are not required to complete the General Education Critical Thinking (A3) course for admission.

If you did not complete a transferable Critical Thinking course, in the Transcript Entry section of the application, please add the following dummy A3 exception course in your last completed/graded term:

Add a new course.

Enter the following course information:

Course Code: A3

Course Title: A3 Exception – High Unit Major

Subject: Special Topics

Credits: 0.00

Grade: P

Transferable: Check the Transferable box

After adding the A3 exception course, go to the General Education section and match the A3 exception course to the A3 – Critical Thinking requirement.

Major-Specific Criteria Matching

All majors have additional major-specific criteria for admission. Please see the Major-Specific Criteria Page for more information and the specific program requirements.

You will report your progress with the major-specific criteria in the Program Materials section of the Cal State Apply application.

Before you start working on the Program Materials section, please make sure you have already completed the following:

Added every college or university that you have attended in the Colleges Attended question.

Fully completed the Transcript Entry question, which includes listing all courses taken (or in progress, planned) for each college/university attended. You must also report credit earned from examinations/tests (AP, IB, CLEP, etc.) and repeated coursework. Refer to the Cal State Apply Transfer Credit Entry Guide for instructions on entering courses into the application.

Double check everything on your application. You will not be allowed to make edits once it is submitted. Any false or incorrect information may negative affect your admission eligibility.

Once you are confident the first three sections (Personal Information, Academic History, and Supporting Information) have been accurately completed, click the Program Materials section, and find the name of the Cal State LA program to which you are applying, and click on it.

In the Program Materials section, you should find the following additional tabs:

Home tab – Read the information carefully before moving on to the next steps.

Prerequisites tab

You must have already entered your college courses in the Transcript Entry section of the Academic History section.

Read the instructions at the top of the screen before proceeding.

We strongly recommend that applicants complete the required major-specific criteria prior to the desired admit term. However, if there is still space available after offering admission to applicants who have met all the major-specific requirements, others may be considered for admission based on their progress in the courses.

Questions tab – Answer all supplemental questions accurately.

Completing the Prerequisite Tab

To assign a course(s) to the prerequisite(s), click the Assign Course button.

On the prerequisite selection screen, you can assign which of your college courses will meet the prerequisite. Click the + button next to the course, or courses, to indicate which courses are being used to satisfy the specific prerequisite.

If you have not taken the course(s) by the required term that satisfies the prerequisite, click the I Am Not Matching Any Courses to this Prerequisite button near the top of the page.

If you have taken your courses at a California community college, please use the ASSIST website to match your community college courses to the Cal State LA prerequisite course codes.

If you are unable to find an equivalent course in ASSIST, please review the Determining Course Equivalencies section of this tips page to learn how to determine which of your courses may be used to satisfy a prerequisite.

Once you are finished assigning your course(s) to the current prerequisite, click the Save and Exit button to go back to the main prerequisite page. Repeat this process for each prerequisite listed.

When all prerequisites have been assigned or skipped, a green checkmark icon will be displayed in the Prerequisites tab.

Completing the Questions Tab

Answer all questions and click the Save My Responses button at the bottom of the page.

Once saved, you will see the following green checkmarks, and will have completed the Program Materials section of the application!

Determining Course Equivalencies for Major-Specific Criteria

Be Aware: A California Community College Associate Degree for Transfer (AA-T/AS-T) in a major deemed similar may be used in lieu of the specific required and recommended preparation courses.

To determine if a course you have taken is equivalent to a specific prerequisite course, you may:

C-ID Designators, if available (noted in Cal State Apply Prerequisite Description)

Comparing Course Descriptions for institutions not in ASSIST

Students who are transferring from institutions where formal articulation does not exist, or if a match is not available in ASSIST, must compare course descriptions to determine whether a course 'reasonably' matches the specified Cal State LA course.

When comparing course descriptions, it is important to pay attention to the following key information:

Does the course cover the key content areas of the Cal State LA course?

Does the course have the same or higher prerequisites to enroll in the course?

Does the course contain a lab or other required activity?

Are the unit values the same or greater at the student's current institution?

The courses have similar topics, both require labs, and same unit value – the two courses are reasonably similar; may be considered equivalent for Major-Specific Criteria prerequisite reporting.

Additional Tips for Comparing Courses

The course should normally count for at least as many units as the course at Cal State LA. If the other institution is a quarter based school, multiply the quarter units by 0.66 to convert to Cal State LA semester units.

Many Cal State LA courses have stated prerequisites. Check the prerequisites for the course of the other institution to ensure that they are similar. A course that requires Calculus as a prerequisite is probably at a higher level than a course that only requires College Algebra as the prerequisite.

Look for similarities between the two course descriptions:

Do they use some of the same vocabulary?

Do they cover the similar content areas?

Be Aware: Although students may be admitted with coursework that reasonably meets the Cal State LA course objectives, additional coursework may be required for graduation should the course be deemed not fully equivalent upon formal review.

Returning Applicants

Report your Returning Student Status

If you were previously admitted and earned units at Cal State LA, please create your Cal State Apply profile as follows:

Which of the following best describes your current educational status?

Select "Transferring from a community college or four-year institution"

How many college credits will you have earned when you enroll at the CSU campus to which you are applying?

Select the option based on how many semester units you have earned at Cal State LA

Returning

Are you applying to return to the CSU campus which you previously attended, and intend to complete the same degree?

Select "Yes"

Which CSU Campus did you previously attend?

Select "Cal State LA"

What was your Student ID?

If known, enter your Cal State LA campus ID number (CIN)

Cal State LA Coursework - To Report or Not Report?

Returning Student (Do Not Need to Report)

If you have not attempted units at another college/university, or through the College of Professional and Global Education (PaGE), you do not need to complete the Transcript Entry section of the application. To skip, please click the "I Am Not Adding Any College Transcripts" button.

For the Program Materials section of the Cal State Apply application, please opt-out of reporting Major Specific Criteria courses. See above "Transfer Tips: Major-Specific Criteria Matching" to learn how to select the "I Am Not Matching Any Courses to this Prerequisite" button.

Returning Transfers(Must Report)

If you have attempted units at another college/university, or through the College of Professional and Global Education (PaGE), you are held to the transfer admission requirements and must complete the Transcript Entry section of the application. Please report coursework from all colleges attended, including Cal State LA. See the "Transfer Applicants" tips section above for more details.

Graduate/Post-Baccalaureate Applicants

Colleges Attended and Degree Earned

In the Colleges Attended section, please accurately and completely report your degree information and dates that you attended each institution. Without this, you may not qualify for graduate admission.

Program Materials

Please complete all tabs as requested.

In this section, some programs may request additional information, documents, and/or recommendations.

Be aware: In addition to the Cal State Apply admission application, some Academic Programs also require a separate supplemental program application. To view which programs require a separate supplemental application, visit the Admissions Deadlines webpage and select the desired graduate admission term.

International Applicants

Email Communications

Cal State LA uses email as the official means of communication with applicants. Be aware, we found that the following email hosts have blocked emails from the University:

qq.com

126.com

163.com

yeah.net

If you currently have an email account with one of the above email hosts, we strongly encourage you to:

Create a new email account with an alternate email host (e.g., gmail.com, outlook.com, icloud.com, etc.); and

Mark the domain (calstatela.edu) as a safe sender in your email account so Cal State LA communications are not flagged as spam/junk mail.

Extended Profile - International Applicant Status

In the Application Profile section, you will be asked if you have or will require an F1 Visa (student) or J1 Visa (exchange) to study at the California State University (CSU)?

If you are an international student, please select "yes."

International Agent/Third-Party Release

If you are working with an individual or third-party organization to complete this application, select “Yes” and enter the representative type, name, and contact information of the individual or organization in this section.

January Transfer Application Update Tips

(Fall 2020 Transfer Application Update period: January 8-31, 2020)

Who must update their application?

Applicants who attended U.S. colleges and universities must update their Cal State Apply application during the January Application Update window. This is a required step in the Fall 2020 Cal State LA admissions process, and it must be completed no later than January 31, 2020.

The accurate reporting of your Academic History is very important! Please review your Cal State Apply admission application, and make the necessary updates to the following sections:

Academic History – You are required to report all schools attended, and enter all U.S. college coursework.

Double-check that you still fulfill the General Education (GE) requirements. This is a very important step, especially if you did not pass a Fall 2019 GE course with a grade of ‘C’ or better, or if there are changes to your Spring 2020 courses.

Program Materials-Prerequisites Tab

If applicable, confirm that you have attempted to assign a course for each of the major-specific prerequisite courses. If you had any course changes, please re-assign course(s) as appropriate.

Be aware: If you do not submit the required updates during the Application Update window, we will assume you are no longer interested in Cal State LA, and we will withdraw your admission application. Requests for late updates will not be accommodated.

Review your currently submitted application

To view the information you submitted when you first applied to Cal State LA, log back into your Cal State Apply account and download your application in PDF format. To find the pdf, go to the application dashboard and:

Navigate to the Check Status tab and click the download button next to a program, or

Navigate to the Submit Application tab and click the download button next to a program.

After you download the application PDF, please review it for:

ACADEMIC HISTORY – Did you report every college/university that you have attended?

CALCULATED GPA – Review your calculated transferable units and GPA

Graded Hours = Transferable Units

GPA Score = Transferable GPA

Does it look correct? If no, check your reported classes for accuracy and confirm that your transferable courses are indicated as "transferable."

GENERAL EDUCATION – Did you report the correct equivalent classes? If no, check your reported classes and make any necessary corrections.

Colleges Attended - Where have you attended college?

Be aware: Applicants can add new colleges but cannot delete or edit previously added colleges and dates of attendance. If you need to edit attendance dates to add Spring and Summer courses, contact Cal State Apply Applicant Support ​who can extend the dates for you.

It is important that we have your complete college history. Please report all colleges/universities that you have attended, and plan to attend prior to enrolling at Cal State LA.

Be aware: For Fall 2020 admission, grades must be reported for all college courses taken through the Fall 2019 term (December 2019). Failure to do so will result in the withdrawal of your Fall 2020 Cal State LA admission application.

ENTER GRADES: For terms that were in progress at time of initial application submission, but for which you now have grades (e.g., your Fall 2019 courses), you must do the following:

Go the Transcript Entry page and click the "Edit" button for the college/university whose classes you want to add grades or make changes.

Find the term you want to change (e.g., Fall 2019), then click the term edit button.

If you need to add or remove any courses from the current term, do this now. Once you are satisfied with the courses listed, change the term's Completion Status from "In Progress/Planned" to "Completed".

Enter the grade earned for each course. When finished, double-check that all grades are accurate then click the "Save" button. If you know a course is CSU Transferable, make sure the "Transferable" box is checked!

FINAL CHECK: Make sure all courses and grades are entered accurate, and the transferable box is checked for all transferable college coursework! This information will be used to calculate your GPA and completed units for admission eligibility determination.

Transcript Entry - Did you repeat any classes?

The CSU honors "the grading policies of the institution where credit was earned by accepting official transcript entries including those reflecting academic renewal, repeat, and incomplete grades."

If the transcript identifies the course as repeated and excludes the course from the institution GPA, enter a grade of RP. This applies to district transcripts that may include repeats at different colleges within the district and note them on one transcript.

Do not mark repeats for in progress courses. If a repeat is in progress, the original grade is reported.

If your college offers Academic Renewal, use a grade of AR for courses noted as such on the transcript.

Forget to enter AP/IB/CLEP Test Credit?

If you forgot to add AP/IB/CLEP test credit, add it under the current spring term coursework.

Check your Calculated Transfer GPA and Units

To view the Calculated Transfer GPA and Units based on your entered college coursework, go to the Transcript Entry area of the Academic History section of the Cal State Apply Application, and click the "Calculate my Transfer GPA" button.

After clicking the button, it will display the calculated Transfer GPA and Transfer Credit Hours (i.e., total number of completed transferable semester units).

If you only attended U.S. colleges, do not select 'I am not adding any General Education Courses.'

Do not leave one or more Subject areas incomplete.

Applicants with international coursework that cannot be entered select 'I am not adding any General Education courses'. If credit history includes some U.S. credits that qualify for GE, designate credit towards the eligible subject categories.

Need more help with how to report your Academic History - Colleges and Courses?

How do you submit the Updates?

After you have made all the necessary updates/changes, hit the "Update my application" button on the Application Dashboard to "resubmit" the application. If you skip this step, your updates will not be sent Cal State LA.